Sweden wants to tighten gun laws after mass shooting

Sweden said Friday it wants to tighten its gun laws, following a lone gunman’s mass shooting of 10 people Tuesday with his licensed firearms at an education center in Orebro, about 200 kilometers west of Stockholm.

After killing seven women and three men between the ages of 28 and 68, the attacker apparently killed himself with one of his weapons.

The coalition government said in a statement that it has come to an agreement on a proposal restricting access to semiautomatic weapons, specifically citing the AR-15 rifle, which has been used in several U.S. shootings. It is “an example of a weapon that is compatible with large magazines and can cause a lot of damage in a short time,” the statement said.

“There are certain types of weapons that are so dangerous that they should only be possessed for civilian purposes as an exception,” the government said.

While it is not immediately clear what weapons were used in Tuesday’s shooting, Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer told Reuters a ban on the AR-15 would be a “preventative measure.”

Sweden’s government also called for a reassessment of the requirements for hunting licenses that would allow Swedes to possess an AR-15, which could then be used, with some adjustments, in a mass shooting.

AR-15 rifles have been allowed in Sweden for hunting since 2023, Reuters reported and since then 3,500 licenses have been issued.

Police have not revealed what weapons were used in this week’s incident but have said that three rifles found near the suspect’s body were licensed to him. Police have seized a fourth gun also licensed to the suspect.

Police say they have not determined a motive for the shootings. However, Broadcaster TV4 has shown a video shot by a student hiding in a bathroom during the ordeal.  Someone can be heard in the video shouting, “You will leave Europe.”

The police have not released the nationalities of the victims, nor have they released the identity of the shooter.

The Swedish press, however, has identified the suspect as 35-year-old Rickard Andersson, whom they describe as a recluse with mental health issues.  

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VOA Uzbek: Central Asian countries moving closer to China

While Russia is still controlling Central Asian countries politically and economically, those states are also looking for new partners, especially with China, to help ensure their own development. And according to the regional experts, even if the U.S. starts a tough policy against Beijing, it will not have a serious impact on Central Asia, and they will not stop their economic relations with China. 

Click here for the full story in Uzbek. 

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US to push Russia to end war in Ukraine through sanctions

The U.S. special envoy to Russia and Ukraine said Thursday the U.S. plans to significantly step up pressure on Russia through sanctions to end the war in Ukraine. 

In an exclusive interview with the New York Post, Special Envoy Keith Kellogg said there is a lot of room to increase sanctions on Russia, particularly in Russia’s energy sector. He characterized sanctions enforcement on Russia as “only about a 3” on a scale of 1 to 10 on “how painful the economic pressure can be.” 

Kellogg told the Post he understands that both Moscow and Kyiv will have to make concessions to end what he called the “industrial-sized” killing in the war. 

In the interview, Kellogg also was critical of the approach by the administration of former President Joe Biden of “supporting Ukraine as long as it takes,” calling it “a bumper sticker, not a strategy.” 

Kellogg said the Trump administration is focused on a “holistic approach” to ending the war, combining support for Ukraine with increased pressure on Russia. 

Kellogg’s Chief of Staff Ludovic Hood echoed those sentiments when he told the GLOBSEC Transatlantic Forum in Washington on Thursday, “Nothing’s off the table at this stage” as far as negotiations for a peace deal. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s presidential website reported the U.S. special envoy also spoke Thursday with Ukraine’s head of the office of the president, Andriy Yermak. In a statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s office said the two discussed Kellogg’s upcoming visit to Ukraine, as well as the situation on the front lines and security issues for Ukrainian civilians.  

The statement said the two gave “special attention” in their conversation to the upcoming Munich Security Conference, scheduled to begin in one week. 

In a separate interview with the Associated Press on Thursday, Yermak stressed the importance of “active engagement” between Ukraine and the Trump administration, particularly as any peace negotiations. 

Yermak emphasized the importance of keeping the Trump White House up to date and providing accurate information about the battlefield situation. He said direct communication with U.S. partners is crucial for establishing a shared position, because it is impossible to form any peace plans without Ukraine. 

Meanwhile, in the latest reports from the battlefield, Ukraine’s air force reported Friday – from its Telegram social media account – Russian attacks across multiple Ukrainian regions killed at least three civilians and injured five over the past 24 hours.  

The report said Ukrainian air defenses shot down 81 of 112 Shahed combat drones and decoy drones Russia launched over nine oblasts, or regions, while 31 other drones were lost without causing damage.

From his Telegram account, Kherson Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said Russian shelling killed one person and wounded five others, and two high-rise buildings and six private houses were damaged. 

The regional administration in Sumy Oblast says two people were killed when Russian shelling destroyed a two-story apartment building. The report said the victims’ bodies were found in the rubble as rescue crews cleared the area and there are fears more bodies could be found.  

 

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Trump imposes sanctions on International Criminal Court

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday authorized economic and travel sanctions targeting people who work on International Criminal Court investigations of U.S. citizens or U.S. allies such as Israel, repeating action he took during his first term.  

The move coincides with a visit to Washington by Israel’s Prime Minister Benajmin Netanyahu, who — along with his former defense minister and a leader of Palestinian militant group Hamas — is wanted by the ICC over the war in the Gaza Strip.  

It was unclear how quickly the U.S. would announce names of people sanctioned. During the first Trump administration in 2020, Washington imposed sanctions on then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and one of her top aides over the ICC’s investigation into alleged war crimes by American troops in Afghanistan. 

The ICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The sanctions include freezing any U.S. assets of those designated and barring them and their families from visiting the United States. 

The 125-member ICC is a permanent court that can prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression against the territory of member states or by their nationals. The United States, China, Russia and Israel are not members.  

Trump signed the executive order after U.S. Senate Democrats last week blocked a Republican-led effort to pass legislation setting up a sanctions regime targeting the war crimes court.  

The court has taken measures to shield staff from possible U.S. sanctions, paying salaries three months in advance, as it braced for financial restrictions that could cripple the war crimes tribunal, sources told Reuters last month. 

In December, the court’s president, judge Tomoko Akane, warned that sanctions would “rapidly undermine the Court’s operations in all situations and cases, and jeopardize its very existence.”

Russia has also taken aim at the court. In 2023, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. Russia has banned entry to ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan and placed him and two ICC judges on its wanted list. 

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Azerbaijan detains two more journalists as watchdogs denounce crackdown

Azerbaijani authorities detained two more journalists this week, bringing the number held in the past year to nearly two dozen.

Police on Wednesday arrested Shamshad Agha, of the news website Argument, and Shahnaz Beylargizi of Toplum TV. A court in the capital, Baku, on Thursday ordered the journalists to be held in pretrial detention for two months and one day, and three months and 15 days respectively, according to their lawyers.

The journalists are charged with smuggling — a charge used in several other cases since November 2023, as authorities detained at least 23 journalists.

Many of those currently detained had worked for the independent outlets Abzas Media and Meydan TV.

All the journalists being investigated since November 2023 have denied wrongdoing, and media watchdogs say they believe the cases are designed to silence media.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ, said that Agha’s arrest “underscores a grim intent by Azerbaijani authorities to silence and further restrict the country’s small and embattled independent media community.”

“Azerbaijan’s government should immediately reverse its unprecedented media crackdown and release Agha along with all other unjustly jailed journalists,” said a statement from CPJ’s Gulnoza Said.

Bashir Suleymanli, who is head of the Baku-based legal assistance group known as the Institute of Civil Rights, believes that the arrests are an attempt by authorities to stifle free speech.

“It seems that the process will continue until the complete elimination of independent journalism in the country,” he told VOA.

Lawmaker Bahruz Maharramov, however, says the arrests are not a press freedom issue.

“Law enforcement agencies have taken relevant measures based on facts and irrefutable evidence, the authenticity of which is beyond doubt,” he told VOA. “Of course, since such media organizations are formed more as instruments of influence of the West, the legal and judicial measures taken against them are observed with inadequate reactions from the West.”

Based in Azerbaijan, human rights activist Samir Kazimli says that independent media and news outlets critical of the government are undergoing a difficult period.

“If this policy of repression does not stop, independent media in Azerbaijan may be completely destroyed,” he told VOA.

Kazimli said that the international community, including rights groups, politicians and U.S. and European officials “must take steps using urgent and effective mechanisms to stop the Azerbaijani authorities’ attacks on civil society and independent media.”

One of the journalists detained this week had recently spoken out about concerns for the future of independent media in Azerbaijan.

“The lives of all independent journalists are in danger,” Agha told VOA in January.

The editor of Argument, a news website covering democracy, corruption and human rights, said he has been banned from leaving the country since July.

The research organization Freedom House describes Azerbaijan as an “authoritarian regime” and states that authorities have “carried out an extensive crackdown on civil liberties in recent years.”

Elshan Hasanov of the Political Prisoners Monitoring Center told VOA that the total number of detainees documented by the Azeri nonprofit is 331.

Azerbaijani authorities reject criticism on detainees as biased.

Parliamentarian Maharramov told VOA that media in the country are free and that conditions for providing everyone with information, including diversity of opinion and freedom of action in the media sector as a whole, are fully ensured.

Azerbaijan is among the worst jailers of journalists in the world, according to data by the CPJ. The country ranks 164 out of 180 on the Press Freedom Index, where 1 shows the best environment for media. 

This story originated in VOA’s Azeri Service.

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Swedish police describe ‘inferno’ at scene of mass shooting

Police in Sweden investigating the nation’s worst mass shooting said at a news briefing Thursday that the scene at an adult learning center was an “inferno” of smoke, with injured and dead victims.

The attack on Tuesday left 10 people dead, including the suspected shooter, at Campus Risbergska in the city of Orebro, about 200 kilometers west of Stockholm. The facility offers adult courses, including Swedish language classes for immigrants. Law enforcement officials say the shooter, who Swedish media have identified as 35-year-old Rickard Andersson, may have been a student at the center.

Law enforcement officials have not officially identified the suspect, whose cause of death remains unclear.

Orebro police Chief Lars Wiren said at the news conference Thursday that about 130 officers arrived at the scene within 10 minutes of an alarm, where they found “dead people, injured people, screams and smoke.”

As officers entered the building, they reported it was partially filled with smoke, making it difficult for them to see. They reported gunfire that they believed was directed at them but reportedly did not return fire.

Police said the smoke was not caused by fire but by “some sort of pyrotechnics.” Several officers had to seek medical treatment for smoke inhalation.

Chief investigator Anna Bergkvist said Thursday that the suspect had a license for four guns, all of which have been confiscated.

“Three of those weapons were next to him when police secured him inside the building,” she said.

Bergkvist said investigators have not determined a motive for the mass shooting, telling Agence France-Presse that “multiple nationalities, different genders and different ages” were among those who were killed.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

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Baltic nations count final hours to ending electricity ties to Russia

VILNIUS, LITHUANIA — Nearly 3 1/2 decades after leaving the Soviet Union, the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania this weekend will flip a switch to end electricity-grid connections to neighboring Russia and Belarus — and turn to their European Union allies.

The severing of electricity ties to oil- and gas-rich Russia is steeped in geopolitical and symbolic significance. Work toward it sped up after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to invade Ukraine three years ago, battering Moscow’s EU relations.

“This is physical disconnection from the last remaining element of our reliance on the Russian and Belarusian energy system,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and other dignitaries are expected at a ceremony on Sunday as a specially-made 9-meter-tall clock in downtown Vilnius counts down the final seconds of the Baltic states’ electricity ties to Russia.

Chilly ties since the fall of the Soviet Union

The Baltic countries, which are all NATO members, have often had chilly ties with Russia since declaring independence from the USSR in 1990 — and relations soured further over Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Sixteen power lines that used to connect the three Baltic states with Russia and Belarus were dismantled over the years as a new grid linking them with the rest of the EU was created, including underwater cables in the Baltic Sea.

On Saturday, all remaining transmission lines between them and Russia, Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad — a Russian exclave wedged between EU members Poland and Lithuania and the sea — will be switched off one by one.

Then, for 24 hours, the Baltic Power System will operate solo in an “island operation mode.” The next day, the power system is set to merge with the Continental European and Nordic grids through several links with Finland, Sweden and Poland.

The Kaliningrad region, which has no land ties to mainland Russia, already relies on its own power generation, according to Litgrid, Lithuania’s electricity transmission system operator.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that the disconnection plan was announced in advance by the Baltic countries and the Russian energy sector had taken preparatory steps to ensure smooth operation on its side.

“Those plans were announced a long time ago, and they required certain actions by our and their electric companies,” Peskov told reporters. “We have taken all necessary measures to ensure reliable and uninterrupted operation of our unified energy system.”

Risks of troublemaking?

The three Baltic countries, which together share a 1,633-kilometer-long border with Russia and Belarus, officially informed Moscow and Minsk of the disconnection plan in July. Their national transmission system operators credited 1.2 billion euros, or $1.25 billion, in EU and other support, to help the countries synchronize with the Continental Europe Synchronous Area.

“Lithuania has done a lot in the last 30 years to disconnect, to become independent,” Nausėda said. Three years ago, “we stopped buying any kind of energy resources from Russia. It was our response to the war in Ukraine.”

Despite the advance notice, the Baltic nations are still on watch for a possible response from their former Soviet partners.

“The risk of cyberattacks remains substantial,” Litgrid said last week, adding that continued vigilance, collaboration, defensive steps and “robust” cybersecurity measures were needed to effectively mitigate potential threats.

Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa warned Wednesday of possible provocations, but said Latvia was well-prepared and services including the armed forces and national guard were stepping up their vigilance and security measures.

“Clearly there are risks, we understand that very well. But the risks are identified and there is a contingency plan in case these risks materialize,” Siliņa said.

After the disconnection plans were announced, propaganda campaigns cropped up on social media and in printed leaflets in city streets that issued fake-news warnings about blackouts, severe energy shortages and sky-high energy bills for consumers.

“We heard those rumors, but we are used to such things already,” said Jolanta Karavaitiene, a retired teacher, in central Vilnius. “Of course, we must disconnect from them. Given the geopolitical situation, I see no reason for us to be there (in the Russian grid).”

Still, some in the region were taking precautionary measures.

Estonia’s public broadcaster ERR has reported surging sales of generators. Home appliance chain Bauhof sold dozens more generators last month compared to January a year ago, and rival Ehituse ABC had to limit their purchases the report said.

A long road toward energy independence

The Baltic countries’ steps toward energy independence have been decades in the making.

In 2003, prior to joining the EU, Lithuania decided to shut down the Soviet-built Ignalina nuclear power plant in response to concerns in Brussels over its safety. It was decommissioned in 2009.

Lithuania built an offshore oil terminal in the Baltic Sea in 1999. Seven years later, it became the country’s sole crude oil import point after Russia’s surprise move to halt supplies of oil to Lithuania through Russia’s vast Druzhba pipeline network.

Rokas Masiulis, the CEO of Litgrid, said Lithuania has “suffered a great deal” because of Russian actions in the past, such as through halting oil supplies and jacking up prices for gas that his country once depended on.

He said Lithuania today has “much more than we need” in terms of electricity capacity, from both fossil fuels but also increasingly solar and wind. “So we are safe,” he said.

The disconnection with Russia “is neither bad for them, (nor) bad for us,” Masiulis said. “We were sort of interconnected and interdependent on each other. Now we will just part our ways.”

The three Baltic countries have rebuilt power lines and launched a vast construction and reconstruction program to turn their networks away from Russia and toward the West, the Litgrid CEO added, calling it a technological feat.

“Actions by Russia — by them being aggressive and pushing their neighbors — has really helped us,” Masiulis said. “Maybe we’ve suffered a little with oil prices, with gas prices, but we were forced to act. So we built alternative routes.”

“Now we’re in much better state than we were before,” he added. “So maybe they wished us ill, but ultimately everything worked very well for us.” 

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French PM survives no-confidence vote

France’s prime minister survived a no-confidence vote by parliament on Wednesday after he invoked special constitutional powers to force through the country’s 2025 budget. 

Only 128 lawmakers voted in favor of the no-confidence motion against Francois Bayrou, falling short of the 289 votes required to pass. 

Far-left lawmakers called for the measure after Bayrou invoked Article 49.3, which grants the minority government special constitutional powers to pass legislation without a parliamentary vote. 

The no-confidence motion appeared to have no chance of succeeding after the Socialists and the far-right National Rally lawmakers announced they would not support it. 

Under France’s Constitution, the no-confidence motion’s failure meant that the 2025 budget automatically became law. 

The French political scene has been challenging since President Emmanuel Macron called snap elections last year, a move that resulted in no party having a majority in parliament. 

Some information for this story came from Reuters and The Associated Press. 

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Earthquakes keep rattling Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini every few minutes

ATHENS, GREECE — Earthquakes rattled Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini every few minutes through the night and into Wednesday as authorities bolstered their emergency plans in case the hundreds of temblors over the past few days are a harbinger of a larger quake to come.  

A coast guard vessel and a military landing craft were in the wider area as a contingency should an evacuation be required, Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias said Wednesday during an emergency meeting with security officials, scientists and the prime minister in Athens.  

“We are obliged to draw up scenarios for better and for worse regarding the prolonged seismic activity,” Kikilias said during the meeting, which was televised live.  

Predicting earthquakes is not scientifically possible, and experts cannot yet determine definitively whether the seismic activity between the islands of Santorini and Amorgos could be a precursor to a significantly larger earthquake, or is part of an earthquake swarm that could continue shaking the area with small or moderate intensity quakes for weeks or months. 

 “I understand the fear of what it means at the moment to be on a Santorini that is constantly moving,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, as he called on residents to remain calm and follow authorities’ instructions.  

Rescue crews with a sniffer dog and drones have been deployed on Santorini as a precaution since Sunday, while authorities have banned access to several coastal areas and ordered schools on several islands to shut for the week. Public events on Santorini have been banned, and local authorities were restricting access to clifftop areas that are among the biggest tourist draws to the island.  

Thousands of residents and visitors have already left Santorini, frightened by the hundreds of earthquakes measuring between magnitude 3 and magnitude 5 that have struck the area since the weekend.  

Ferry lines and commercial airlines have added ships and flights to their schedules this week to accommodate the increased demand. However, ferry services were disrupted on Wednesday due to rough weather.  

The quakes, which all have epicenters beneath the seabed between Santorini and the Amorgos, have so far caused no injuries or major damage, although limited rockslides and cracks in some older buildings have been reported on Santorini. Greece lies in a highly seismically active part of the world and earthquakes are frequent. But it is extremely rare for any part of the country to experience such an intense barrage of frequent earthquakes. 

 Last week, authorities said monitors had picked up increased volcanic activity within Santorini’s caldera, or flooded crater, but scientists say this is unrelated to the current quakes. They have also said the seismic activity northeast of the island is unlikely to trigger either of the two volcanoes in the area.  

Southeast Aegean regional governor Giorgos Hatzimarkos told Greek state television that the country’s electricity provider had sent staff and equipment to the island to prepare contingency plans in case of power cuts, while civil engineers were checking the road network. Digital Governance Deputy Minister Konstantinos Kyranakis said the government was working with telecommunications providers to ensure backup plans in case of a network outage in the area.

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China says it is willing to work with EU on ‘global challenges’

BEIJING — China is willing to work with the European Union on boosting cooperation and responding to “global challenges,” its foreign ministry said on Wednesday, as the bloc faces potential U.S. tariffs on its shipments to the world’s largest economy.

China attaches great importance to EU ties and hopes the bloc will become a reliable cooperation partner, said Lin Jian, spokesperson at the Chinese ministry.

The EU’s trade chief said on Tuesday that the bloc wanted to engage swiftly with the United States over President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen forecast negotiations with Washington would be tough.

As transatlantic ties come under strain with Trump’s tariff threats, China hawks within the EU such as von der Leyen are showing signs of willingness to rethink the relationship between Beijing and Brussels, a bond that had been tested by trade tensions and China’s ties with Russia.

Speaking in Brussels on Tuesday, von der Leyen said the EU would keep “de-risking” its relationship with China but added that there was room to “find solutions” in their mutual interest and “find agreements” that could even expand trade and investment ties.

She did not give details on what those agreements could be.

In Davos, Switzerland, last month, von der Leyen also said both sides should find solutions of mutual interest.

In October, the EU imposed double-digit tariffs on China-made electric vehicles after an anti-subsidy investigation, in addition to its standard car import duty of 10%. The move drew loud protests from Beijing, which in return, raised market entry barriers for certain EU products such as brandy.

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Trump orders target several UN bodies

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday stopped U.S. engagement with the U.N. Human Rights Council, extended a halt to funding for the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA and ordered a review of the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO.

“It’s got great potential and based on the potential we’ll continue to go along with it, but they got to get their act together,” Trump told reporters. “It’s not being well run, to be honest and they’re not doing the job.

“A lot of these conflicts that we’re working on should be settled, or at least we should have some help in settling them. We never seem to get help. That should be the primary purpose of the United Nations,” the U.S. president said.

U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said, “From day one, U.S. support for the United Nations has saved countless lives and advanced global security.”

“The secretary-general looks forward to continuing his productive relationship with President Trump and the U.S. government to strengthen that relationship in today’s turbulent world.”

Trump said that he was not looking to take away money from the 193-member world body, though he complained that Washington had to pay a disproportionate amount.

Washington is the U.N.’s largest contributor – followed by China – accounting for 22% of the core U.N. budget and 27% of the peacekeeping budget. The U.N. has said the U.S. currently owes a total of $2.8 billion, of which $1.5 billion is for the regular budget. These payments are not voluntary.

UNRWA

Trump’s order on Tuesday was largely symbolic and mirrored moves he made during his first term in office, from 2017-2021.

Since taking office for a second term on Jan. 20, Trump has ordered the U.S. to withdraw from the World Health Organization and from the Paris climate agreement – also steps he took during his first term in office.

The U.S. was UNRWA’s biggest donor – providing $300 million-$400 million a year – but former President Joe Biden paused funding in January 2024 after Israel accused about a dozen UNRWA staff of taking part in the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Palestinian militants Hamas that triggered the war in Gaza.

The U.S. Congress then formally suspended contributions to UNRWA until at least March 2025. UNRWA provides aid, health and education services to millions of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

The United Nations has said that nine UNRWA staff may have been involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack and were fired. A Hamas commander in Lebanon – killed in September by Israel – was also found to have had a UNRWA job. The U.N. has vowed to investigate all accusations made and repeatedly asked Israel for evidence, which it says has not been provided.

Human Rights Council

The first Trump administration also quit the 47-member Human Rights Council halfway through a three-year term over what it called chronic bias against Israel and a lack of reform. The U.S. is not currently a member of the Geneva-based body. Under Biden, the U.S. was re-elected and served a 2022-2024 term.

A council working group is due to review the U.S. human rights record later this year, a process all countries undergo every few years. While the council has no legally binding power, its debates carry political weight and criticism can raise global pressure on governments to change course.

Trump’s executive order on Tuesday also asks Secretary of State Marco Rubio to review and report back to him on international organizations, conventions, or treaties that “promote radical or anti-American sentiment.”

He specified that the U.N. Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) should be reviewed first because Washington had previously accused it of anti-Israel bias.

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As quakes rattle Greek islands, a few brave tourists enjoy having Santorini to themselves

Santorini, Greece — More Greek islands closed schools Tuesday as hundreds of earthquakes rattled the Aegean Sea, while a handful of hardy tourists enjoyed having Santorini’s stunning views to themselves.

Thousands of residents and seasonal workers have left the Cycladic Islands as hundreds of quakes up to magnitude 5 were recorded in the volcanic region since Friday. Ferry and commercial flight operators added services to accommodate departures.

The quakes have caused cracks in some older buildings but no injuries have been reported so far. On Tuesday, schools were shut on 13 islands, up from four the previous day. Santorini earlier canceled public events, restricted travel to the island and banned construction work in certain areas.

Efthimios Lekkas, head of the state-run Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, said that the epicenter of earthquakes in the Aegean Sea was moving northward away from Santorini, emphasizing that there was no connection to the area’s dormant volcanoes.

“This may last several days or several weeks. We are not able to predict the evolution of the sequence in time,” Lekkas told state-run television.

In Santorini’s main town, Fira, the narrow, whitewashed streets along the island’s clifftops were deserted — a rare sight even in the offseason — except for small pockets of tour groups, many from Asian countries.

Joseph Liu, from Guangzhou in southern China, said that he had wanted to visit Santorini for years after seeing it in a documentary. He joined family and tour group members on a balcony deck typically used for high-end wedding receptions.

“This place is amazing, really beautiful. Just like I saw in the program: the mystery, the scenery,” he said. “The [group] leader told us about the earthquakes before we came so it was not a surprise.”

Retired police officer and ship worker Panagiotis Hatzigeorgiou, who has lived on Santorini for more than three decades, said that he has turned down offers to stay with relatives in Athens.

“Older residents are used to the earthquakes … But it’s different this time. It’s not the same to have earthquakes every 2-3 minutes. The main thing is not to worry,” he said, adding with a laugh: “Now we can listen to music alone and have coffee by ourselves.”

In Athens, government officials are continuing to hold daily high-level planning and assessment meetings with briefings from island officials.

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Despite the war, Ukrainian culture is blooming

Ukrainian culture is booming amid the war with Russia. That’s despite the constant rocket attacks and damage to almost 500 heritage sites, according to UNESCO. Experts say Ukrainians have never been as interested in their own culture as they are now. As Lesia Bakalets reports from Kyiv, almost any event is sold out, especially in the capital. (Videographer: Vladyslav Smilianets )

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Russian missile attack kills 4 in Kharkiv

A Russian missile attack Tuesday killed at least four people in the Kharkiv region in eastern Ukraine, officials said.

Kharkiv Governor Oleh Syniehubov said on Telegram the missile hit the central part of the city of Izyum and also injured 20 people.

Syniehubov said the attack damaged a five-story residential building as well as multiple administrative buildings.

Earlier Tuesday, Ukrainian officials said Russian drone attacks overnight damaged houses and other buildings in multiple regions. 

Ukraine’s military said its air defenses shot down 37 of the 65 drones that Russian forces launched in the attacks, with intercepts taking place in the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Kyiv, Poltava and Sumy regions.

The Sumy Regional Military Administration said the attacks damaged eight houses and a school in the region.

Cherkasy Governor Ihor Taburets said on Telegram that debris from destroyed drones caused fires at three businesses.

In Kyiv, officials said falling drone debris damaged several schools and a clinic.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday its air defenses destroyed a Ukrainian guided missile over the Sea of Azov.

Rare earth minerals

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday he possibly would be interested in continuing U.S. aid to Ukraine in exchange for access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals.

“We’re putting in hundreds of billions of dollars. They have great rare earth. And I want security of the rare earth, and they’re willing to do it,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

Rare earth minerals like those in Ukraine include lithium and titanium. They are essential for an array of modern high-tech products.

In his daily address Monday, before Trump’s announcement, Ukraine’s president reiterated the country’s need to defend itself against Russia’s ongoing attacks. He said Russia is “focusing primarily” on Ukraine’s energy sector.

“They continue their attacks, constantly adjusting their strikes to the capabilities of our defense, making them more difficult to repel,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“There is a constant rapid evolution of electronic warfare,” the president said and urged Ukraine to “be much faster” in adjusting to the continuous changes.

The supply of air defense systems for Ukraine is another issue for the Eastern European country. Zelenskyy said that the supplies of the systems for Ukraine are “critical and must not stop.”

“We must constantly search worldwide for ways to strengthen defense, increase production of necessary equipment in Ukraine, expand localization of production and obtain licenses from our partners,” the president said. “This is a huge undertaking, and much of Ukraine’s future depends on it.”

Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters.

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Scientists hope these tiny froglets can save their species

LONDON — It was quite the journey for such tiny froglets: traveling thousands of miles from the forests of southern Chile to London, carried and brooded inside their fathers’ vocal sacs for safety.

London Zoo said Monday that 33 endangered Darwin’s frogs, named after scientist Charles Darwin, who discovered the species, were born in their new home as part of a rescue mission to save the species from extinction.

Known populations of Darwin’s frogs have suffered a 90% decline within a year since a deadly disease known as chytrid fungus arrived in 2023 in their habitat, the Parque Tantauco forests in southern Chile. The fungus has affected hundreds of amphibian species around the world.

The creatures have a unique reproductive strategy: after the females lay eggs, the male frogs protect and rear the tiny tadpoles inside their distensible vocal sacs for them to develop in safety.

A team of conservationists traveled to Chile’s forests in October in search of healthy Darwin’s frogs free of the infectious disease. They collected 52 frogs, which were then placed in climate-controlled boxes for a 11,265-kilometer ride by boat, car and plane to their new home in London.

Of the group, 11 male frogs — each measuring under 3 centimeters — carried 33 tadpoles that were born at the zoo.

“We knew we were embarking on something special — the clock was ticking, and we needed to act quickly if we were going to save these frogs,” said Ben Tapley, curator of amphibians at London Zoo.

He said the successful parent-rearing of the froglets was a “powerful symbol of hope for the species.”

The frogs are now kept in pairs inside dozens of glass tanks filled with moss and with temperatures that mimic their natural habitat. Keepers said the zoo will set up a breeding program for them, and any frogs they breed may later be reintroduced into the wild.

Andres Valenzuela-Sanchez, a researcher at ZSL, the conservation charity behind London Zoo, said the project will ensure the species has a fighting chance of recovery.

“These frogs are not only vital for the future of their species but also help us better understand how we can combat chytrid fungus and safeguard other amphibians globally,” he said.

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Multiple earthquakes rattling Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini

Multiple earthquakes are rattling Santorini, a volcanic island in Greece, prompting authorities to dispatch rescuers with tents, a sniffer dog and drones, and to shut schools on four islands.

Residents have been warned to avoid indoor gatherings, check escape routes, stay away from cliffs and to drain swimming pools to reduce potential structural damage to buildings in the event of a large earthquake.

Greece lies in a highly seismically active part of the world, and earthquakes are frequent. The vast majority cause no injuries and little or no damage, but the country has also seen deadly quakes. Earthquakes can’t be predicted, but authorities are taking measures as a precaution.

Santorini, one of Greece’s most popular tourist destinations, took its present crescent shape following a massive volcanic eruption in antiquity. Now, millions of visitors each year come to see its dramatic scenery of whitewashed houses and blue-domed churches clinging to the cliff along the flooded caldera, or volcanic crater.

Last week, scientists said they had noticed increased volcanic activity in the caldera but say this isn’t linked to the earthquakes.

Here’s a look at the current situation:

What’s going on?

About 200 quakes with magnitudes between 3 and 4.9 were registered from Saturday to Monday afternoon between Santorini and the nearby island of Amorgos, authorities said.

Seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos said on Greece’s ERT television that the seismic activity began on Jan. 24, but intensified Saturday, with increasing frequency and magnitudes.

The fault line producing the current earthquakes runs for about 120 kilometers (75 miles), but only the southern part between Santorini and Amorgos has been activated. The earthquakes have epicenters beneath the seabed, roughly 30-40 kilometers (18-25 miles) from any of the islands. Scientists say this is good news, as an epicenter beneath land could potentially be more destructive. But a large quake could also trigger a tsunami, so authorities have warned people to stay away from coastal areas and head inland if they feel a significant earthquake.

So far, there has been no damage or injuries reported, although some rockslides have occurred.

Could the earthquakes trigger a volcanic eruption?

Santorini lies along the Hellenic Volcanic Arc, which stretches from the Peloponnese in southern Greece through the Cycladic islands.

Last Wednesday, Greece’s Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry announced monitoring sensors had picked up “mild seismic-volcanic activity” inside the island’s caldera. Similar volcanic activity had been recorded in 2011, when it lasted for 14 months and ended without any major issues.

Another volcano — a submarine one called Kolumbo — lies about 8 kilometers (5 miles) northeast of Santorini, nearer to the epicenter of the current earthquakes.

But seismologists say the quakes aren’t related to the volcanoes.

A meeting between government officials and scientists determined that seismic activity within Santorini’s caldera “remains at the same low levels as in recent days,” the Civil Protection Ministry said Monday, but that it was “particularly increased” between Santorini and Amorgos.

What worries authorities?

Scientists are still trying to determine definitively whether the multiple quakes are foreshocks — smaller earthquakes before a major temblor. Papadopoulos said that there was a “high probability” they are.

Santorini’s main villages are built along the rim of the volcano’s caldera — producing the dramatic scenery of cascading whitewashed houses and sunset viewpoints that make the island so popular but also raising concerns in the event of a major earthquake. The sheer cliffs also make some areas prone to rockslides.

What precautions are being taken?

Authorities sent a team of rescuers with a sniffer dog and drones to Santorini, where they set up tents in a basketball court next to the island’s main hospital as a staging area. Push alerts have been sent to cellphones warning people to stay away from areas where rockslides could occur and banning access to some coastal areas.

Residents and hotels have been asked to drain swimming pools, as the water movement in a major quake could destabilize buildings. People have been told to avoid old buildings and check for exit routes when in built-up areas.

Schools on Santorini, as well as the nearby islands of Anafi, Amorgos and Ios, will remain shut all week.

What’s the history?

The fault line that has been activated was the site of Greece’s largest quake in the last century: a 7.7 magnitude temblor dubbed the Amorgos earthquake that struck in 1956, triggering a roughly 20-meter (65-foot) tsunami, causing significant damage in Amorgos and Santorini and killing more than 50 people.

Santorini is also the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in human history. Known as the Minoan eruption, it occurred around 1,600 B.C. and destroyed much of the formerly round island, giving Santorini its current shape. The eruption is believed to have contributed to the decline of the ancient Minoan civilization.

Although it’s still an active volcano, the last notable eruption occurred in 1950.

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British environmental journalist denied entry to Cambodia

BANGKOK — A journalist who covers environmental issues from Cambodia has been banned from entering the country where he has been based for the past five years.

British reporter Gerry Flynn told VOA that immigration officials denied his re-entry to Cambodia on Jan. 5, when he tried to return after a vacation in Thailand.

The journalist went public with the incident Monday.

“It’s not just a professional blow, but very personal, too,” Flynn told VOA by phone. “We’ve all seen in the last five years, press freedom [has] deteriorated there.”

Flynn, 33, is staff writer at Mongabay, a news website that reports on environmental issues worldwide. He has spent five years reporting from Siem Reap in Cambodia’s northwest, covering environmental and governance issues.

The first sign of a possible problem came on January 2, when Flynn says he was stopped at the Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport prior to departing Cambodia.

Authorities told Flynn that one of the documents in his visa applications was fake. But, the reporter said, he was allowed to embark on his trip to visit Moo Deng, a baby endangered pygmy hippopotamus that has become a worldwide tourist attraction in Thailand.

When he returned three days later, Flynn said he was questioned again.

“This time they didn’t mess around. They were just straight away saying that my visa had been acquired fraudulently. They couldn’t tell me which document was supposed to be incorrect or fake,” he said. “The only thing they would tell me is that I’d been placed on the blacklist on November 25, 2024.”

Immigration officials told Flynn he was banned indefinitely and would not be able to return to Cambodia. Denied entry, the journalist traveled back to Thailand.

Flynn has a one-year Type E business visa, valid through February 2025, and a valid work permit issued by Cambodia’s labor ministry. His press accreditation expired January 1, but he had applied to renew the pass.

His news outlet, Mongabay, has said that it believes the action is retaliatory.

Flynn recently featured as a contributor to a France24 documentary, “Real carbon, false credits? Investigating mass deforestation in Cambodia”.

The documentary focuses on carbon-offset projects in the Cardamom Mountains. After it aired on November 22, Cambodia’s government labeled the findings “fake news.”

Two other contributors were detained a day after it aired, but later released, according to Mongabay.

Neither Cambodia’s government, Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor its press communications division replied to VOA’s emails requesting comment.

Mongabay on Monday said Cambodian authorities have not provided further information to Flynn about his case or his options to appeal.

In a statement, Mongabay said that Cambodia claims Flynn had applied for a visa to work as an electrician. But Mongabay said Flynn has “consistently held a valid government-issued press pass … in Cambodia.”

“For more than five years, Flynn has reported from Cambodia, and despite the increasing hostility towards journalists, it’s a country that he’s grown to love,” the statement said. “As such, it’s both a professional and personal blow to be uprooted from the country Flynn has called home in what appears to be direct retaliation for his journalistic work.”

International media watchdogs have condemned Cambodia’s action.

“The immigration entry ban on journalist Gerry Flynn shows just how far Cambodian authorities are willing to go to suppress independent reporting on the country’s environmental catastrophe,” Shawn Crispin, the senior Southeast Asia representative for the Committee to Protect Journalist, told VOA by email.

Crispin noted that Flynn has reported on deforestation in Cambodia, adding, “His expose journalism no doubt made people in powerful positions who profit from the illegal trade very uncomfortable.”

Phil Robertson, director of Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates, told VOA, “Cambodia is working overtime to wipe out what’s left of media freedom in the country.”

Reporting or campaigning about environmental issues in Cambodia can be risky.

Local journalist Chhoeung Chheng died from his injuries after being shot in Siem Reap province in December while investigating deforestation.

In July, 10 members of Cambodian environmental activist group Mother Nature were sentenced from six to eight years in prison for conspiring against the state.

The group had been investigating waste pollution in Phnom Penh’s Tonle Sap River. Mother Nature had campaigned against the destruction of natural resources throughout Cambodia and corruption.

Overall, Cambodia has a poor record for press freedom. It ranks 151 out of 180 on the World Press Freedom Index, where 1 shows the best media scene.

Reporters Without Borders, which compiles the index, describes a “legacy of repression against the independent media.”

In November, an investigative journalist who helped expose the existence of massive scam centers in Cambodia announced that he was quitting.

The journalist, Mech Dara, was detained for 30 days and charged with incitement, which carries a potential sentence of up to two years in prison.

Two other local reporters who investigated mistreatment of workers at a scam center were detained in late January, according to watchdogs.

Flynn, who is the president of the Overseas Press Club of Cambodia, said that until recently Cambodia “refrained from going after foreign journalists.”

“All journalists, whether foreign or Cambodian all face varying levels of harassment in the field. I know some who were arbitrarily detained while working,” he said.

According to a quarterly review report from the Cambodian Journalist Alliance, more than a dozen journalists were legally or physically harassed between July and September of 2024.

Reflecting on his case, Flynn said, “I think the biggest annoyance is it has eaten the whole month, when in reality that month should have been spent continuing to report on important issues in Cambodia.”

“For me it’s obviously a setback but it is not going to stop either myself or others from reporting on issues related to the environment,” Flynn added. “I don’t think silencing journalists is going to prevent people from seeing the problems that are happening.”

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Film director found guilty of sexual assault in France’s first big #MeToo trial 

Paris — A Paris court found a filmmaker guilty of sexual assault on French actor Adèle Haenel when she was between 12 and 15 in the early 2000s, in the country’s first big #MeToo trial.

Filmmaker Christophe Ruggia was sentenced Monday to two years under house arrest with an electronic bracelet plus a two-year suspended sentence. Ruggia had denied any wrongdoing.

Haenel, now 35, was the first top actor in France to accuse the film industry of turning a blind eye to sexual abuse after the #MeToo movement broke out. In 2019, she accused Ruggia of having repeatedly touched her inappropriately during and after filming of the movie “Les Diables,” or “The Devils,” in the early 2000s.

Haenel appeared relieved, breathing deeply, as Monday’s verdict was being released. She was applauded by some women’s rights activists as she left the courtroom.

The court ruled that Ruggia “took advantage of the dominant position” he had on Haenel at the time. “During quasi-weekly meetings at your home for over three years you had sexualized gestures and attitudes,” as Haenel was “gradually isolated” from her loved ones, the court said in a statement.

Ruggia’s lawyer said her client would appeal.

He “maintains that he has never touched Adele Haenel,” the lawyer, Fanny Colin, said. “Sentenced in these conditions and on the sole basis of her words seems to us not only unjustified but dangerous.”

Haenel, star of the 2019 Cannes entry “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” has in recent years vocally protested what she’s called an insufficient response to sexual abuse in French filmmaking.

At the Cesar Awards in 2020, she walked out of the ceremony after Roman Polanski won best director. Polanski is still wanted in the United States decades after he was charged with raping a 13-year-old girl in 1977.

In 2023, Haenel, announced she was quitting the French film industry that she denounced for “complacency toward sexual aggressors.” She published an open letter in which she said Cannes and other pillars of the French film industry are “ready to do anything to defend their rapist chiefs.”

While #MeToo initially struggled to find traction in France, some other actors and film industry workers have since spoken out.

French renowned actor Judith Godreche attended Monday’s verdict at the Paris courthouse. “It was a very moving and a very important moment that reminded me of things that, in my case, may go unpunished,” she told reporters with tears in her eyes.

Last year, Godreche accused film director Benoit Jacquot of having raped and physically abused her in a six-year relationship that began when she was 14 years old. Jacquot, who has more than 50 director credits in film and television, was handed preliminary charges of rape, sexual assault and violence in July 2024.

Godreche is also accusing another film director, Jacques Doillon, of sexual abuse while he was directing a film when she was 15.

Both Jacquot and Doillon have denied the allegations.

In a separate case, French actor Gerard Depardieu is to go on trial in March on charges of sexually assaulting two women on a film set.

Depardieu, who has denied any wrongdoing, is accused of using “violence, coercion, surprise or threat” in the alleged sexual assaults that prosecutors say took place in 2021 on the set of “Les Volets verts,” or “The Green Shutters.”

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WHO proposes budget cut after US exit, defends its work

London — World Health Organization member states will discuss cutting part of its budget by $400 million in light of President Trump’s move to withdraw the United States, its biggest government funder, from the agency, a document released on Monday showed.

Opening the agency’s annual executive board meeting, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also defended the agency’s work and recent reforms and reiterated a call for the U.S. to reconsider its exit and enter into dialog with the WHO about further change.

“We would welcome suggestions from the United States, and all member states, for how we can serve you and the people of the world better,” he said.

The budget cut will be discussed at the Feb. 3-11 Geneva meeting, during which member state representatives will discuss the agency’s funding and work for the 2026-2027 period.

The executive board proposes cutting the base programs section of the budget from a proposed $5.3 billion to $4.9 billion, according to a document released on Monday. That is part of the wider $7.5 billion budget for 2026-2027 that was originally proposed, including money for polio eradication and tackling emergencies.

“With the departure of the biggest financial contributor, the budget could not be ‘business as usual,'” the document reads. The U.S. is the WHO’s biggest government donor, contributing around 18% of its overall funding. The WHO has already separately taken some cost-cutting steps after the U.S. move.

However, some board representatives also wanted to send a message that the WHO would preserve its strategic direction despite the challenges, the document adds.

The $4.9 billion is roughly the same as the base program budget for the previous period, 2024-2025.

Trump moved to exit the WHO on his first day in office two weeks ago. The process will take one year under U.S. law.

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Trial of Spain’s ex-football chief over forced kiss to begin

MADRID — Spain’s former football chief Luis Rubiales goes on trial on Monday over the forced kiss he gave star forward Jenni Hermoso with the player scheduled to take the stand.

The 47-year-old provoked worldwide outrage after he cupped Hermoso’s head and gave her an unsolicited kiss after Spain beat England to win the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia.

Prosecutors are seeking two and a half years in prison for Rubiales, one year for sexual assault for the forced kiss and 18 months for allegedly coercing Hermoso, 34, to downplay the incident.

The kiss was given “unexpectedly and without the consent or acceptance of the player,” prosecutors wrote in their indictment.

“Constant and repeated pressure was exerted directly on the player Jennifer Hermoso and through her family and friends with the aim of justifying and publicly approving the kiss that Luis Rubiales gave her against her will,” it added.

The highly anticipated trial gets underway at the National Court in San Fernando de Henares near Madrid at 10 a.m. and is expected to run until Feb. 19.

Rubiales is scheduled to take the stand on Feb. 12. He has called the kiss an innocuous “peck between friends celebrating” and denied any coercion.

Among the accused alongside Rubiales are ex-women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda and two former federation officials, Ruben Rivera and Albert Luque.

They also stand accused of trying to coerce Hermoso with prosecutors seeking 18 months’ jail against them.

Historic success overshadowed

The scandal that rocked Spanish football and wrecked Rubiales’ career broke on Aug. 20, 2023, moments after the women’s national team had clinched World Cup glory in Sydney.

As Hermoso joined her teammates in collecting their winner’s medals, Rubiales clasped her head and kissed her on the lips before letting her go with two slaps on the back.

The act unleashed a public outcry at what critics deemed an abuse of power. A recent reform of the Spanish criminal code classifies a non-consensual kiss as sexual assault.

Rubiales, who was already under investigation for alleged corruption in his role as federation head, finally gave into pressure and stepped down in September 2023, two days after the start of a probe over the kiss. He had been federation chief since 2018.

In a recent Netflix documentary titled “Se acabo” (“It’s over”), which looks back at the players’ anger after the scandal overshadowed their historic success, Hermoso revealed she cried following the kiss.

Hermoso, the all-time top scorer for the national women’s team who now plays in Mexico, said in the documentary that the federation demanded she appear in a video where she would claim Rubiales’ kiss “was nothing, it was… joy, euphoria.”

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Italian who saved children from WWII massacre dies aged 96

Rome — Milena Bernabo, awarded one of Italy’s top civilian honors for saving three children from the Nazis during World War II, died Sunday aged 96, local authorities said. 

Bernabo was awarded the gold medal for civil merit for saving her young neighbors during the August 1944 massacre of Sant’Anna di Stazzema, in Tuscany, in which 560 people died.  

Then aged 16, Bernabo had been led together with fellow villagers into an outhouse and targeted by German machine gun fire. 

Bernabo was wounded, according to the citation. 

But she managed to escape with Mario, five, and 10-year-olds Mauro and Lina, from the building as it was set on fire. 

The trio she saved were present to see Bernabo receive the valor award at a ceremony in the central city of Lucca in 2005. 

Officials at the time hailed her bravery as an example of many Italians’ “silent resistance” to Nazi occupation during the latter part of World War II. 

“Throughout her life she was an ambassador of peace, reminding the young people she encountered of the Nazi-Fascist massacre of Sant’Anna di Stazzema,” the office of the mayor of Stazzema, Maurizio Verona, told AFP in an emai 

“Milena remembered with the hope that those who listened would understand that Fascism and Nazism were absolute evils of the last century and that the institutions and their representatives would work to build a better future.” 

Two other women from Sant’Anna were awarded the same honor — Cesira Pardini, who died in 2022, and Genny Bibolotti Marsili, who died the day of the massacre. 

They were all “heroines,” Mayor Verona told the ANSA news agency, hailing Bernabo’s strength and determination to keep the memory of what happened alive.           

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Protests against Germany’s Merz who supports migration proposal backed by far-right

Berlin — Tens of thousands took to the streets across Germany during the weekend to protest the center-right leader and front-runner in a Feb. 25 election for sending to parliament proposals for tough new migration rules that received the backing of a far-right party. 

Angry protesters in Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and Leipzig said that Friedrich Merz and his Christian Democrats broke Germany’s unwritten post-Nazi promise by all democratic parties to never pass any rule or resolution in parliament with the support of far-right, nationalist parties such as the Alternative for Germany (AfD). 

Merz on Wednesday proposed a nonbinding motion in parliament calling for Germany to turn back many more migrants at its borders. The measure squeaked through thanks to AfD’s support. 

Merz was determined to show commitment of his center-right Union bloc, which also includes the Bavaria-only CSU party, to cutting irregular migration after a deadly knife attack last month by a rejected asylum-seeker. 

However, on Friday, the German parliament narrowly rejected a bill calling for tougher rules on migration that risked becoming the first draft legislation to pass thanks to a far-right party. Nonetheless, it has become a focus of a controversy about the attitude toward the far right of the front-runner in the upcoming election. 

Merz has been accused by protesters and politicians on the left of breaking a taboo and endangering mainstream parties’ “firewall” against AfD. He insists his position is unchanged and that he didn’t and won’t work with the party. 

Hundreds of protesters temporarily blocked offices of the Christian Democrats in different cities, and Sunday afternoon up to 20,000 came together for a big rally in Berlin. 

In Cologne, people protested on 350 boats on the Rhine, German news agency dpa reported. The boats lined up in front of the city’s skyline with its famous cathedral with protesters holding up banners with slogans such as “No racism” and “For democracy and diversity.” 

Polls show the center-right Union, which put forward the migration proposal and bill, leading with around 30% support, while AfD is second with about 20%, and the Social Democrats and Greens further down. 

Merz appears to hope that he will gain support by making the Union look decisive in forcing a tougher approach to migration, while blunting the appeal of the anti-immigration AfD and making the governing parties — which say they already have done much to tackle the issue — look out of touch with Germans’ concerns. 

The 12-year-old AfD first entered the national parliament in 2017, benefiting from then-Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision two years earlier to allow large numbers of migrants into the country. 

A year ago, hundreds of thousands also protested in weeks-long rallies all over Germany against the rise of the far-right and purported plans to deport millions of immigrants, including some holding German passports. 

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Turkey says it will join with neighbors to fight Islamic State group in Syria 

ISTANBUL — Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Jordan will come together to fight the remnants of the Islamic State group, a move the Turkish foreign minister says would allow the United States to cut ties with Kurdish militants in Syria. 

Washington’s decadelong relationship with Kurdish-led forces in Syria is opposed by Turkey. Ankara says the People’s Defense Units, or YPG, are tied to another Kurdish group listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union. 

The YPG, which spearheads the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, has played a central role in fighting IS alongside American special forces and now guards thousands of IS prisoners in northeast Syria. 

“The basic problem is that the YPG has been guarding Daesh inmates and keeping them in prison … they’re not doing anything else,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Sunday, using the Arabic term for IS. 

“So Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Jordan need to come together to fight Daesh. We are capable of doing that and God willing this is the step we will be taking as four countries in the near future. We have already done the preliminary talks for that process.” 

Fidan, who was speaking at a news conference in Doha, Qatar, alongside Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said that the new Syrian government had indicated it will take responsibility for IS prisoners. 

Turkey wants U.S. President Donald Trump to step back from supporting the Kurdish fighters, who Ankara regards as terrorists due to their links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged war against Turkey since 1984. 

“We hope that President Trump will make the right decision and right this wrong … it is an open wound that needs to be closed as soon as possible,” Fidan added. 

Since Syrian rebels launched an offensive to take the country in November, Turkish-backed fighters have targeted Kurdish forces, taking a number of towns. Meanwhile, the Turkish military has maintained pressure on Kurdish fighters in both Syria and northern Iraq. On Sunday, the Defense Ministry said Turkish troops killed 23 “PKK/YPG terrorists” in northern Syria without providing further details. 

Ankara has called for the Syrian Democratic Forces to be purged of elements linked to the PKK and be absorbed into a future Syrian military. 

The U.S. currently has around 2,000 troops in northeast Syria. During his first term in office, Trump said he would withdraw all American forces from Syria, which triggered a Turkish offensive against the YPG in 2019. 

His seemingly warm relationship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has led to speculation that Trump will again seek to remove the U.S. military presence. 

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